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Forum Discussion
NASguru
Oct 19, 2016Apprentice
RN516 or RN526
I'm looking to replace my aging Ultra 4 Plus and have been comparing the 516 and 526. The last time I looked the 526 didn't exist so it's nice to see a bigger version now available. I just have a f...
- Oct 20, 2016
For reference, I am using the 516 for Plex, upgraded to 16GB RAM, about 1000 HD 1080p DTS movies currently, no 4K in library yet, and it plays most things like a champ, will transcode a 1080p stream or 2 but that's it. I only purchased mine about 3 months ago so my timing was pretty bad as they announced the existence of the new machine about a month after my 516 arrived.
Mine is at 24TB currently and it does hiccup now and then but overall I'm happy with it. I have considered upgrading the processor, but really feel like a better option is to sell my mint condition 516 and use those proceeds as a discount to the 626. The 626 I feel is really the way to go as mdgm pointed out. Plus technology is moving faster and faster I want to future proof the processor as much as possible. 626 will do 4K without blinking!
Lastly, while it doesn't affect me currently, I really think I will regret not having the 10G networking the new machines offer. My next home will most certainly be setup with such a network.
Bottom line, buy the 626 and never look back!
**This has unfortunately not been a paid advertisement by NetGear ;)
jhagg
Oct 20, 2016Luminary
For reference, I am using the 516 for Plex, upgraded to 16GB RAM, about 1000 HD 1080p DTS movies currently, no 4K in library yet, and it plays most things like a champ, will transcode a 1080p stream or 2 but that's it. I only purchased mine about 3 months ago so my timing was pretty bad as they announced the existence of the new machine about a month after my 516 arrived.
Mine is at 24TB currently and it does hiccup now and then but overall I'm happy with it. I have considered upgrading the processor, but really feel like a better option is to sell my mint condition 516 and use those proceeds as a discount to the 626. The 626 I feel is really the way to go as mdgm pointed out. Plus technology is moving faster and faster I want to future proof the processor as much as possible. 626 will do 4K without blinking!
Lastly, while it doesn't affect me currently, I really think I will regret not having the 10G networking the new machines offer. My next home will most certainly be setup with such a network.
Bottom line, buy the 626 and never look back!
**This has unfortunately not been a paid advertisement by NetGear ;)
NASguru
Oct 20, 2016Apprentice
jhagg wrote:For reference, I am using the 516 for Plex, upgraded to 16GB RAM, about 1000 HD 1080p DTS movies currently, no 4K in library yet, and it plays most things like a champ, will transcode a 1080p stream or 2 but that's it. I only purchased mine about 3 months ago so my timing was pretty bad as they announced the existence of the new machine about a month after my 516 arrived.
Mine is at 24TB currently and it does hiccup now and then but overall I'm happy with it. I have considered upgrading the processor, but really feel like a better option is to sell my mint condition 516 and use those proceeds as a discount to the 626. The 626 I feel is really the way to go as mdgm pointed out. Plus technology is moving faster and faster I want to future proof the processor as much as possible. 626 will do 4K without blinking!
Lastly, while it doesn't affect me currently, I really think I will regret not having the 10G networking the new machines offer. My next home will most certainly be setup with such a network.
Bottom line, buy the 626 and never look back!
**This has unfortunately not been a paid advertisement by NetGear ;)
This is good feedback and for simplicity I agree the 626 will probably get it done for me as well. You wouldn't happen to know if the 626 can do 3 simultaneous streams of 1080P? I suspect it can do 2 1080P streams with no issue? Along the same line, I wonder how many 4K streams the 626 can accomplish. I haven't looked but does this forum have a sell/buy/trade section? If so, that's where I would start if you intend to trade-in.
- mdgm-ntgrOct 20, 2016NETGEAR Employee Retired
The RN716X has an Intel Xeon Ivy Bridge E3-1265Lv2 2.5GHz (3.5GHz Turbo) Quad Core with 16GB ECC
The RN626X is Intel® D-1521 Quad Core 2.4GHz Xeon Server Processor with 8GB DDR4 ECC RAM
The E3-1265Lv2 uses a 22nm manufacturing process, while the D-1521 processor is much newer and uses a 14nm process. The D-1521 will operate faster at a lower clock speed
The main reason the RN716X cost so much was the high cost of 10G ports, I believe. These have come down a lot in price.
- NASguruOct 20, 2016Apprentice
mdgm wrote:The RN716X has an Intel Xeon Ivy Bridge E3-1265Lv2 2.5GHz (3.5GHz Turbo) Quad Core with 16GB ECC
The RN626X is Intel® D-1521 Quad Core 2.4GHz Xeon Server Processor with 8GB DDR4 ECC RAM
The E3-1265Lv2 uses a 22nm manufacturing process, while the D-1521 processor is much newer and uses a 14nm process. The D1521 will operate faster at a lower clock speed
The main reason the RN716X cost so much was the high cost of 10G ports, I believe. These have come down a lot in price.
Got it so Netgear is still trying to recoup their manufacturing cost on the 716? Would it then be fair to say the 716 consumes more power than the 626 during operations given the Chipset differences?
- StephenBOct 20, 2016Guru - Experienced User
NASguru wrote:
You wouldn't happen to know if the 626 can do 3 simultaneous streams of 1080P? I suspect it can do 2 1080P streams with no issue? Along the same line, I wonder how many 4K streams the 626 can accomplish.
Of course if there is no transcoding even an RN102 can do 3 simultaneous 1080p streams. The transcoding limits will depend on source frame rate, source and target frame size, and the source and target codecs. It'd be helpful if there was more information on this (though it is diffficult to present it in a useful way).
- mdgm-ntgrOct 20, 2016NETGEAR Employee Retired
The datasheets suggest the power consumption of the RN626X and RN716X would be about the same, I think.
- NASguruOct 20, 2016Apprentice
StephenB wrote:
NASguru wrote:You wouldn't happen to know if the 626 can do 3 simultaneous streams of 1080P? I suspect it can do 2 1080P streams with no issue? Along the same line, I wonder how many 4K streams the 626 can accomplish.
Of course if there is no transcoding even an RN102 can do 3 simultaneous 1080p streams. The transcoding limits will depend on source frame rate, source and target frame size, and the source and target codecs. It'd be helpful if there was more information on this (though it is diffficult to present it in a useful way).
:smileylol: So true. So I found this on the Plex forums: https://forums.plex.tv/discussion/155986/readynas-516-how-many-transcoding-streams
It would seem there is a benchmark of sorts since it mentions a PassMark data score. I doubt one exists for the 626 yet but that may help give an idea. I like to hear from someone who has taken the plunge and can atest to the results, but that may take some time given I have yet to see many 626s in the wild yet.
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